WASHINGTON, Dec 19 (Reuters) – Sales of used homes in the United States rose slightly in November, as economic uncertainty and still-high mortgage rates reduced demand.
Home sales rose 0.5% last month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.13 million units, the National Association of Realtors reported Friday. The association also noted that fewer sellers were putting their homes on the market.
Economists polled by Reuters predicted that home resales would increase to a rate of 4.15 million units. Sales fell 1.0% in November on an annual basis.
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“Inventory growth is starting to plateau,” said Lawrence Yun, chief economist at the brokers association.
While the rate on the popular 30-year fixed mortgage has fallen considerably from high levels at the start of the year, it has remained above 6%, according to data from mortgage lender Freddie Mac.
The improvement in mortgage rates is also being partially offset by a sluggish job market, with the unemployment rate rising to 4.6% in November, the highest level in more than four years, and the slowest annual wage growth since May 2021.
Existing home inventory increased 7.5% year-over-year to 1.43 million units in November, after recording double-digit gains in the previous months. At November’s sales pace, it would take 4.2 months to exhaust the current stock of existing properties, compared to 3.8 months a year ago.
The median price of existing homes last month increased 1.2% from a year ago to $409,200.
(Reporting by Lucia Mutikani)
